Much more rain than snow in many places

Thursday

Feb 28, 2013 at 3:15 AMFeb 28, 2013 at 5:29 AM

FROM STAFF REPORTS

DOVER — Though many parts of Strafford and Rockingham counties braced for what was expected to be another winter storm on the heels of this past weekend's storm, this system had weather officials scratching their heads right up until the storm was expected to begin winding down Wednesday night.

“It's going to be a while before the fat lady sings,” National Weather Service meteorologist Eric Sinsabaugh said.

He said the storm — and, yes, this was by definition a storm despite its lackluster appearance — had been a “real pain in the neck” to forecast.

“It's a real misbehaving storm,” he said.

He said it would continue to be a “pain in the neck” to predict throughout the overnight hours.

By nightfall Wednesday, there was distinct variation in not only accumulation totals, but what type of precipitation fell in local areas.

Places closer to the coast, he said, experienced mostly rain while points further inland saw at least some snow.

In some spots of Strafford County, roughly four inches of snow had fallen before 6 p.m. In higher elevations in New Durham the accumulation was even greater.

Serving as what seemed like a mid-point between rain and snow, Dover experienced mostly a wintry mix of precipitating slush over the course of Wednesday.

By late afternoon the commute was slick since rain had fallen for most of the morning and colder temperatures began to set in for the night.

A layer of slush covered roadways as the rain turned to snow as motorists made the messy commute home.

Closer to the coast, a high surf crashed against rocks and the shoreline in New Castle against a gray sky that left the rest of the day's weather open for question.

During Wednesday night's Dover City Council meeting, City Manager Michael Joyal said the city has spent a lot of money this winter in snow cleanup during the many storms to strike. He said adjustments may have to be made in order to afford the rest of the winter, if rough weather continues.

“I will be working with department heads and our staff to make the needed adjustments for the remainder of this year in the likelihood that we have a few more storms ahead of us,” he said, regarding the amount of money they city has spent on storm cleanup so far.

He said although he has the ability to make these adjustments on his own, he will go the council to let them know if he plans to make any adjustments.

A little farther north in Rochester, snow slowly accumulated all day and was piling up.

Sinsabaugh said that was completely normal, even within counties, let alone across the state. He said some areas might just get some sleet and rain, while other communities in the same county could see inches upon inches of snow.

Many minor as well as some significant car accidents were attributed to slick roads Wednesday.

While many power outages were expected from this storm, with its mix of heavy snow and freezing rain building up on wires and tree limbs, there was only a small number reported Wednesday night.